benefits & difference between mastering to tape or recording each track to tape..

[ine-kpro...]

how much of a difference is mixing in daw and just mastering the stereo mix onto to tape for tape flavour than going from recording each track individually onto tape then tracking it into your daw for mixdown.

also how much of a difference is mixing in daw and just mastering the stereo mix onto to tape for tape flavour than just mixing it all into your daw without going to tape at all. i was considering getting a little 2-4 track and maybe mix into it or individually record my sample or audio onto the reel to reel and dump it back to the daw for arrangement. longer process though but wondering whether there are large benefits getting a 2-4 track reel to reel, even an 8 track maybe.

[bionic brown]

I had to rebirth this thread.

Is there a huge difference?

[thabest216]

yea i wanna know too

[Came2rck]

this is a groovy question...

[Adam Dempsey]

Some nice benefits in tracking drums or anything percussive to tape.. simply helping absorb transients and can raise underlying musical harmonics relative to peak level. Can the difference be huge? Sometimes is the only simple answer. And often tracking to tape is enough. Tracking and mixing to tape for a given project can be too much (saturation, noise, even overdriven electronics due to inexperience), unless you know how to get the best out the variables involved.

Much of the desired tape sound comes from the particular machine.. transformers (eg, Ampex AG440), or lack of (MCI), or tubes (see below), or the many other variables of tape formulation, bias, speed and level.

I (and most mastering engineers) would much rather master from a mix done well to tape, than transfer a mix to tape for that sound in mastering.

If in doubt, send to mastering both digital and tape prints of the mixes.

Of course tape in these cases = a well maintained and aligned 1/4" or 1/2" at 15 or 30 ips, with documented repro EQ & alignment tones and any tape NR used. See a recent thread on this in the mastering forum.

Incidentally, I just received up a copy of an album I worked on in 2004, ordered from the US as it wasn't available here.. tracked to 2" 24 track here in Melbourne, mixed to Studer C-37 (from memory) valve 1/4" & mastered analogue. Sounds huge, yet clean & "open".